


Hitchhikers and Long Drives

by nicoisnotstraight



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types
Genre: F/F, My First Fanfic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-22
Updated: 2018-01-02
Packaged: 2018-11-17 06:17:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,490
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11269692
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nicoisnotstraight/pseuds/nicoisnotstraight
Summary: In which Reyna decides to pick up a hitchhiker on her way home from work, said hitchhiker convinces Reyna to take her on a trip across the country. Reyna can't help it, there's just something about this lady that intrigues her.





	1. Chapter One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reyna does something she never would've done before, and she's almost positive she'll regret it. But it turns out to be one of the best decisions she has ever made.

Reyna listened to the click of her heels on the hot pavement as she made her way to her car. Today had been her first day at her job, and it had been long and tiring. Thank the gods she had brought clothes and shoes to change into, her feet were sore and it was hard to do anything in this dress. 

Reyna climbed into the backseat of her car and sighed in relief as she took her uncomfortable heels off. Setting them to the side, she started to get out of her dress, taking a moment to be thankful for tinted windows. She slipped on a Harry Potter t-shirt and a pair of denim cutoffs. Next, she slipped on some socks and pulled on her Nikes.

Hopping to the driver’s seat, Reyna started the car and blasted the AC. She sat like that for awhile, letting the cool air wash over her face and blow the hairs that had escaped from her long braid. Summers in California were hotter than Hades. Eventually, Reyna turned on the radio and pulled out of the parking lot. She hummed as she drove along, glad to be going home where she could relax and be alone. Today at work had been horrible, but she needed the money to help pay for college, so she wouldn’t be quitting anytime soon. Her junior year at college would be starting in a few months, and she couldn’t wait.

Once she hit Highway 1, it was a 30 minute drive to her San Francisco apartment. Reyna stole a glance at the ocean to her left and when she looked back to the road, there appeared to be something—or someone—up ahead. As she neared the object, it became clear that it was a person, and they were waving their arms. Reyna assumed it was a hitchhiker and would have just kept on driving, but she couldn’t help but wonder what this stranger was doing way out here at this time. So, instead of zooming by, she screeched to a halt and rolled down the passenger side window.

 

A woman, who looked to be the same age as Reyna, walked up and leaned down to look through the open window. Reyna’s first observation was that she was beautiful. Her blonde hair was up in a high, messy ponytail, and some strands had fallen out and were framing her face. She had on a black tank top that clung to her body. She had unsettling grey eyes that looked like pools of silver in the sunlight, and her face was shining with sweat from the hot sun and humid air. It looked like she was trying to hide a smile, and Reyna realized she should break this silence.

 

“Hey, what’s your name?” she asked.

 

“Annabeth.”

 

“I’m Reyna. Do you need a ride somewhere?”

 

Annabeth hesitated before she spoke, “Yeah.”

 

“Well, where to?”

 

 

“Well, you’re not gonna agree to it, but I need a ride to Manhattan,” she replied cautiously.

 

Reyna laughed at that, how ridiculous is this lady, asking a complete stranger for a ride all the way across the country? “You’re kidding, right? You do realize that Manhattan is on the other side of the US and that’s like a 43 hour trip by car?”

 

“I’m not kidding, but I am sorry for asking so much of a complete stranger. I know that it’s all the way across the country, but I will pay you for the trip,” Annabeth replied.

 

She does sound really genuine, and the money would really help for her college. “How much are you willing to pay?”

 

“I will pay you ten thousand dollars for the trip. I will also pay for gas, a motel if we stop, all the toll roads, and any drinks or food that we get. I can show you the ten thousand dollars in cash right now, and I can pay for the rest with my card. Please, I would appreciate this more than you can imagine.” Annabeth begged.

 

“I might do it. But, I am worried about my job, I’ll have to come up with a good excuse for being gone. We can either make two stops on the trip, one in Denver and one in Chicago, or just one in Omaha— _ if  _ I agree to go. First, I need to see the ten thousand dollars and ask some questions.”

 

“Do you have any dead relatives?” Annabeth asked suddenly.

 

Okay, maybe stopping was a big mistake after all, “Excuse me?”

 

“For your excuse for your job, ya know. You could call in and say that one of your relatives has died recently and the funeral will be in New York, so you’ll be gone for about a week,” Annabeth said matter-of-factly.

 

Choosing to not mention her dead father, Reyna went for the safer choice, “That’s actually a really good idea, I have a grandfather that’s dead.”

 

“Perfect! Er- sorry about that. You should call in as soon as you can, I’ll get the cash out of my bag while you do it,” she said eagerly.

 

“Okay, I guess I’m driving to Manhattan then.” 

 

Reyna called her boss, Chiron, while Annabeth went to retrieve the money from her bag on the side of the road. Thank the gods Chiron was a kind boss, he said they could find someone else for her shift with no problem. 

 

Annabeth was back at the window with a big stack of cash in hand right as Reyna was sliding her phone into her back pocket. 

 

“Wow, I hope you didn’t steal all of that,” Reyna joked.

 

“Haha, I’ll have you know this is all mine. Now hold out your hand, please,” Annabeth said.

 

Reyna stuck out her hand; Annabeth reached through the window to give it to her, but pulled back at the last second. Reyna was confused.

 

“I don’t want you to speed off as soon as I hand you the cash, I’ve made that mistake before,” Annabeth explained.

 

“Oh, okay, do you want to get in my car then?” Reyna asked.

 

“Yes, please,” Annabeth answered

 

Reyna unlocked the car doors and Annabeth got in, placing her bag in front of her.

 

“You can put that in the back, y’know,” Reyna said.

 

“Right.”

 

Annabeth stretched to place her belongings in the back. Reyna caught herself staring at the skin that was exposed when her tank top came up. Annabeth was wearing denim cutoffs and dirty white hightop converse. And she looked  _ good _ . 

 

_ Stop that _ , Reyna told herself.

 

Annabeth turned back holding the stack of cash in one hand and a pair of rose tinted Ray Ban aviators in the other. She put on the sunglasses and handed the cash to Reyna in one fluid motion that was pretty cool to watch.“You can count the cash if you want, I promise there’s ten grand in your hand. Hey, that rhymed!” Annabeth laughed. 

 

Reyna counted the cash, and sure enough, Annabeth had been true to her words.

 

“Thank you, Annabeth. Now, it’s time for some questions I’ve had since I saw you on the side of the road.”

 

“Ask away,” Annabeth replied with a beautiful smile.

 

“First things first, what brings you to the opposite side of the country that you need to be on with no ride, but ten thousand dollars in cash?”

 

“Well, there’s this game that my friends and I play together, we call it cross-country hide and seek. The rules are that you can’t use your own car and you can’t travel by plane, hence the hitchhiking. We play it for three weeks each summer and Friday marks this year’s first day. My friends, Piper, Percy, Hazel, Frank, Grover, Jason, and I meet up at Percy’s Manhattan apartment a couple days before Friday to plan it out and decide the teams. It is the most fun I have ever had, this will be the fourth year that we’ve done it,” Annabeth said with a gleam in her eyes.

 

“Woah, that sounds intense. I wish I had friends that I could do stuff like that with. So you can’t even travel by plane there?”

 

“Well. . . you can, but I like to start my adventure before the game.”

 

“I guess that makes sense. So, where do you live then?” Reyna asked

 

“I live in San Francisco, born and raised there,” she answered.

 

“Really? Me too. Besides the born and raised part. I was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico and lived there all my life until I moved here for college.”

 

“Wow, that is so cool. What college do you go to? I’m transferring to San Francisco State University for my third year,” Annabeth replied.

 

Reyna couldn’t believe her ears, how could two strangers have so much in common? “That’s the same school that I go to. I think you’ll really love it. How old are you?”

 

“I’m 21, I’ll be 22 on July twelfth.” 

 

“Woah, I’ll be 22 on July fourth,” Reyna said.

 

“Dude, we have a lot in common,” Annabeth said looking at Reyna.

 

“It seems that we do, Annabeth. Now, we should probably start this road trip, what do you say?”

 

“I say, let the journey begin,” Annabeth answered with a dramatic flourish. 

 

————————————————

 

Reyna had been driving for roughly 11 hours when she stopped to get gas in a small town in Utah. Her and Annabeth had talked for 8 hours of that drive, but Annabeth had fallen asleep for the last 3. Reyna and Annabeth had swapped stories and asked questions about each other. It was a lot of fun, and Reyna found that she had grown to be very fond of Annabeth. Now as she looked over at Annabeth’s peaceful sleeping form, she felt a pull in the pit of her stomach that she chose to ignore. 

 

She unbuckled her seatbelt, got out of the car, and walked over to the passenger side to wake her friend up. Opening the door as gently as she could, Reyna leaned in to tap Annabeth’s shoulder.

 

“Annabeth,” she whispered, “Annabeth, wake up.”

 

Annabeth stirred and opened her eyes, looking around groggily, “Where are we?” she saw the gas pumps and her eyes opened wide, “You better not have paid for the gas already, Reyna,” Annabeth accused.

 

“I promise I didn’t, Annabeth. We’re in Salt Lake City right now, we have a 7 hour drive ahead of us to reach Denver, and you’ve slept for 3 hours, hun. Do you need to go to the bathroom or want anything to eat or drink?”

 

 “Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano, you have only known me for eight hours and you find it proper to call me hun?”

 

“Eleven hours if you count the three I listened to you snore and sleep talk,” Reyna vividly remembered the part when Annabeth had repeated Reyna’s name over and over, but she felt it right to leave that part out. 

 

Annabeth blushed, “Sorry about that.”

 

“It’s fine. Now let’s go inside, I gotta pee, man.”

 

Annabeth hopped out of the car and fell as soon as her feet hit the ground. Luckily, Reyna caught her under the arms before she could hit the pavement. The sound of Annabeth’s laughter filled the empty parking lot. Reyna was acutely aware of how close Annabeth was to her and of the warmth radiating from her friend’s body.

 

“I think you fell for me,” Reyna quipped, laughing.

 

“Oh, shut up, loser,” Annabeth shot back, “I think my legs are like  _ completely  _ asleep, though. I can’t even tell if my feet are touching the ground or not right now. They don’t even feel tingly yet, it’s like they aren’t even there. Please help me walk in.”

 

“I guess I have to since you are  _ so  _ helpless. Although, you didn’t even thank me for catching you,” Reyna replied, shrugging. 

 

“Okay, okay, thank you so much for catching me, you’re my hero,” Annabeth said with a roll of her eyes.

 

“That’s much better.”

 

“Whatever,” she muttered.

 

“Can you put any weight on them at all without them giving out?”

 

“No, I don’t think so,” Annabeth replied, leaning on Reyna for support.

 

“Alright, I guess I’ll have to carry you then, if that’s okay,” Reyna said.

 

“It’s fine by me.”

 

Reyna picked Annabeth up bridal style, one arm under her legs and the other supporting her back. Annabeth wrapped one arm around Reyna’s neck and let the other rest across her own stomach. Reyna took in how smooth and toned Annabeth’s legs were, and how she snuggled up against her body, running a hand through her hair that she had decided to take out of its braid. Reyna got the chills when Annabeth touched the nape of her neck. 

 

“Looks like someone has a sensitive spot,” Annabeth teased as she ran her fingers along the goosebumps that had appeared on Reyna’s arm.

 

Of course, the light touch made her visibly shiver again, and Annabeth laughed, delighted to have found out another new thing about her road trip buddy.

 

“You seem pretty ticklish Reyna, I think I could use that to my advantage,” Annabeth giggled.

 

“Yeah, I actually am ticklish, but I don’t think you’ll ever catch me off guard.”

 

“Ooooh, you’re so tough,” Annabeth teased as Reyna opened the door to the 7-Eleven and carried her in.

 

“Watch it, I can drop you,” Reyna threatened.

 

“You wouldn’t dare,” Annabeth said with a sweet smile.

 

“If that’s what you think then you obviously don’t know me well enough. Can I set you down now? Or does it make you feel special to be carried?” Reyna said teasingly.

 

“Well, I guess that will have to change. You can, but you don't have to since I know how much you enjoy it,” Annabeth winked.

 

“I have to say that although I do like carrying around extra dead weight, I'm gonna be setting you down now.”

 

“Fine,” Annabeth said as she slid down from Reyna’s hold. Reyna didn’t miss the extra seconds that Annabeth’s hand lingered on her shoulder. She also didn’t miss the feeling in her stomach caused by Annabeth’s touch.

 

Both girls went to the restroom, and Annabeth bought them snacks and drinks after much stubborn arguing from Reyna, who insisted to pay.

 

As they walked out of the convenience store, Annabeth linked arms with Reyna and rested her head on her shoulder as they walked in peaceful silence to the car, where their journey would resume.

 


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A dog, exposed feelings, and an almost kiss.

Reyna woke up, peeling her face off the cold pane of the passenger side window. Reyna had agreed to let Annabeth drive for the rest of the way to Denver since she needed some rest. She looked to her left to see Annabeth laughing, she looked absolutely gorgeous, with her hair almost golden in the early morning sun that shone into the car. Her skin glowed in the natural light, and her piercing grey eyes looked playful as they looked from the road to Reyna and back again.

 

“What are you laughing at?” Reyna asked groggily, wiping the sleep from her eyes.

 

“You. You just looked so cute while you slept, and man, you were out cold. I mean, you only slept for like an hour, but — did you know that you drool when you sleep? And you must’ve been having some pretty good dreams because you had this cute little smile on your face,” Annabeth said, giggling.

 

Reyna wiped her mouth with her hand, blushing at some of the things Annabeth had said, then she blushed even harder remembering some of the dreams she’d had involving a certain someone sitting next to her.

 

“Well, you seemed to have been studying me while I slept,” Reyna replied, it was Annabeth’s turn to blush. “Are you sure that was only an hour? It feels like I slept for days.”

 

“I was looking out for you, y’know, making sure you didn’t drown in a pool of your own slobber,” Annabeth laughed as Reyna blushed yet again. “Yeah, either you’re a light sleeper or you just missed talking to me.”

 

“Thank you, you’re so selfless. I bet I just really missed talking to you, I mean, who wouldn’t?” Reyna replied sarcastically.

 

“ _ Exactly  _ — woah, what is that on the side of the road?” Annabeth slammed on the brakes and the car screeched to a stop.

 

Annabeth put the car into park after pulling to the side of the road and hopped out, followed by Reyna who went to look at what Annabeth was studying. The two girls peered down at what appeared to be a dog, at first Reyna thought it must be dead but saw the steady rise and fall of its chest.

 

“Do you think it’s hurt?”

 

“Maybe, Annabeth. What are we gonna do about it? I mean, we can’t just leave it here,” Reyna replied worriedly. 

 

“Then it’s as simple as that, we have to take it with us,” Annabeth said nonchalantly.

 

Reyna was about to protest until she saw how lovingly Annabeth was looking at the dog. “I guess we should. We should probably take him to the vet to get him checked out, though.”

 

“Are you serious?! Oh my god, thank you so much Reyna! And I will pay for the vet trip and food and everything,” Annabeth said beaming as she practically flung herself at Reyna to embrace her in a tight hug.

 

At first Reyna stiffened from the sudden embrace, but then she melted into Annabeth’s arms and whispered in her ear, “Dead serious. And it’s no problem, Annabeth, seeing as it makes you so happy.” Reyna could feel butterflies darting around in her stomach, and that feeling in the pit of her stomach came back when she felt Annabeth shiver from Reyna’s breath in her ear.

 

The hug lasted a few seconds longer than they both knew it should’ve. Annabeth broke it before placing a kiss on Reyna’s cheek and whispering, “Seriously, thank you, you’re the best.”

 

Annabeth was blushing and Reyna could feel herself doing the same, praying to the gods that her tan skin wouldn’t show it. “I know,” she replied.

 

Just then the dog woke up with a small ‘ruff’ and tried standing, but collapsed, whimpering. The beautiful dog was staring at the two girls, still whimpering lightly.

 

“It’s a Collie! And it’s absolutely gorgeous, but I think its leg must be hurt,” Annabeth said, crouching down to examine the dog.

 

Reyna bent down to pet it. “This dog is the softest thing ever,” she muttered.

 

Annabeth gasped and Reyna crouched down next to her to see what she was looking at.

 

“It looks like she was attacked or something,” Annabeth said, gesturing to the dog’s back right leg.

 

Reyna leaned in to get a closer look at the leg. There were clear teeth marks and claw marks all along its leg, which was soaked in blood, some fresh and some dried. You could see patches of pink skin where fur had been ripped off.

 

“The poor thing, this has to hurt so much. And look, there are even claw marks slashed across her nose. We have to get her help, who knows how long she’s suffered out here,” Reyna said sadly.

 

“I feel so bad for her. She obviously can’t walk, we’ll have to carry her,” Annabeth said to Reyna. Then, turning to the dog, “Hey, sweetie, we’re gonna help you, okay? Everything is gonna be alright,” she said soothingly, gently petting the dog’s fluffy chest.

 

The dog whimpered in response and the girls took that as an understanding. Carefully, they picked the dog up and brought her over to the car, being gentle with her leg.

 

“She can sit up front with me, that way we can keep an eye on her easily,” Reyna said.

 

Reyna climbed into the passenger seat as Annabeth held the dog. Reyna turned to face the open door and opened her arms as Annabeth gently maneuvered the dog into Reyna’s lap. Annabeth shut the door and jogged over to get in on the driver’s side.

 

“So,” Annabeth said as she started the car and took off, “what should we name her?”

 

“Hermosa,” Reyna replied instantly. She’d been thinking that was the perfect name ever since she'd seen the dog. “It means beautiful in Spanish, I think it is perfect for her, Annabeth.”

 

“I love it,” Annabeth smiled.

 

————————————————

 

Five hours of the six-hour-drive passed in silence. Reyna was asleep in the passenger’s seat, gently rubbing Hermosa’s back, who seemed to be asleep as well. Annabeth spent the drive listening to music and stealing glances at Reyna and Hermosa as they sat there peacefully. The whole drive was relaxing, and Annabeth secretly wished she hadn’t arrived in Denver so soon because that meant she had to wake up her sleeping friends.

 

Annabeth pulled into a parking spot at Park Animal Hospital and Wellness Center, and woke her friends to go into the building. 

 

After registering and a short wait, it was time for Hermosa to be looked at. 

 

The vet, Dr. Juniper, tells them that the bites and claw marks are definitely from coyotes, but there doesn’t seem to be any infections. She prescribed them pain killers and wrapped a bandage around Hermosa’s back right leg and her snout after putting some special ointment on the wounds.

 

The trip didn’t take long at all, and the cost was surprisingly low. Soon they were on the road again. But this time it was a short drive to Motel 6.

 

Reyna checked out a room and was disappointed (not really) to find out that they only had rooms with one bed left. She asked Annabeth if this was okay, and she told Reyna it was completely fine.

 

The motel had a big No Dogs Allowed sign posted on the front door, but the two girls seemed to ignore it, pulling up to the room they had gotten and sneaking Hermosa in when no one was watching.

 

Giggling, the girls shut the door behind them and put their backs against it. Annabeth turned to Reyna and said, “Well, Reyna, I didn’t take you for a rulebreaker.”

 

“Call me cliche, but I think some rules were meant to be broken,” Reyna replied, grinning.

 

“Loser,” Annabeth muttered under her breath.

 

“Hey, I heard that,” Reyna said, lightly punching Annabeth on the arm.

 

“Good, that was the point,” she said, grinning.

 

Annabeth got up and flopped onto the bed, sighing in relief. Reyna watched her from her position on the floor. 

 

“It feels so good to stretch out, dude,” Annabeth said, reaching her arms above her head and arching her back. “I’m gonna go to sleep, feel free to join me,” she added, winking.

 

“That is pretty enticing,” Reyna replied, getting up and walking over to the bed. She took off her shoes and socks, placing them on the floor by the bed. Then she climbed in under the covers and rolled over to face Annabeth, gasping when she realized how close they were.

 

Annabeth laughed and said, “I’ve only known you for a day, and I’ve already got you into bed with me.”

 

“Alright, I think I’ll be sleeping on the floor then,” Reyna said as she got up.

 

“No, no, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I was kidding, please stay,” Annabeth begged, grabbing Reyna’s hand to pull her back.

 

At Annabeth’s touch, Reyna momentarily froze. Her hand was soft and warm in her own, and Reyna tried to ignore the feeling in her stomach that Annabeth seemed to cause so easily. She wondered if Annabeth ever felt the same because of her, and she secretly hoped that she did.

 

Swallowing, Reyna said, “Fine, since you’re practically begging me on hands and knees.”

 

She crawled back into the bed, and she had to admit it did feel really good to relax her muscles. She closed her eyes and lay there. After a second she felt Annabeth move closer to her. Reyna opened one eye, then the other to look at her.

 

“What time is it?” Annabeth asked, eyes open lazily and a small smile on her face.

 

“It’s noon,” Reyna laughed, “don’t you think our sleeping schedules are a bit messed up?”

 

“They are, but that isn’t changing my mind. We should sleep now while we’re tired,” Annabeth said, her eyes fighting to stay open.

 

“Sounds good to me. Do you mind if Hermosa sleeps up here, though? She looks so lonely down there,” Reyna asked.

 

“Not at all.”

 

Reyna called Hermosa up to the bed and she snuggled in between the two girls. Reyna was suddenly aware that Annabeth was still holding her hand. The feeling made her blush, and she was thankful that Annabeth was already asleep.  _ Annabeth _ — asleep right next to her. The thought made her heart flutter. The feeling was ridiculous. How could a single person make her feel this way, a way that she had never really felt before? It was confusing, new, wonderful, and strange all at the same time. It was the best feeling ever.

 

And Reyna was sure this would be the most peaceful sleep she’s ever had.

 

————————————————

 

Annabeth woke up with the sunlight pouring through the blinds and into her fluttering eyes. She takes in her surroundings as her tired eyes adjust. Her face is mere inches away from Reyna’s beautiful, stoic one. Reyna’s eyes are closed and Annabeth takes in the view. She watches as Reyna’s chest rises and falls with every breath. Her dark and luscious hair is splayed all over her pillow, the one that she had ended up sharing with Annabeth. She realizes then that her hand is still resting on Reyna’s and that it has probably been there all night. Not like she was going to be moving it anytime soon. Reyna’s hand was so soft, and Annabeth longed to hold it and kiss it.

 

Carefully, she took a gentle hold of Reyna’s hand and took in the feeling of their intertwined fingers. She sat like that for a while, watching Reyna’s beautiful face, illuminated by the now setting sun, and listening to the soft snores coming from Hermosa, who was still curled up between the two girls.

 

After a few minutes, Reyna began to shift around and Annabeth decided to get up, careful not to disturb Hermosa or the sleeping woman.

 

Leaving a note in case she was still gone when Reyna woke up, Annabeth left their room and took Reyna’s car across the street to the convenience store. She bought an assortment of a dozen donuts, coffee, fruit, and vanilla yogurt. She hurried back to the motel and went inside to discover that Reyna was still asleep, but Hermosa had gotten up and was now wandering around the room.

 

Annabeth took her note off the table and threw it away. Clearing the table — which wasn’t hard — Annabeth decided to set up the makeshift breakfast. She opened the box of donuts and displayed them on one side of the table, then she placed the semi-fresh fruit beside the box along with the two cups of yogurt. Finally, she set the two cups of coffee down, hoping that Reyna liked the kind that she had gotten.

Realizing that the food should probably be eaten now and that no one liked cold coffee, Annabeth went over to the bed to wake up Reyna.

 

“Reyna,” she whispered, stroking her cheek gently, “Reyna, wake up.”

 

Reyna mumbled something incoherent and her eyes fluttered open. Stretching and sitting up, Reyna asked, “Wow, what’s that smell? It’s delicious.”

 

Instead of answering with words, Annabeth walked over to where the gourmet style breakfast was displayed and showed it off in a Vanna White-esque manner.

 

Reyna walked over to the table, combing her hair with her fingers. She stopped when she saw the food. “Who did this, is there room service here?” She asked, turning to Annabeth with a smile on her face.

 

“Actually… it was me!” Annabeth said proudly.

 

“Awe, Annabeth, you’re so sweet. But you didn’t have to do this.”

 

“Of course I didn’t  _ have  _ to do this, but I  _ wanted  _ to, and there is no taking it back now,” Annabeth said.

 

“Okay, okay. Thank you for breakfast, Annabeth, now let’s eat.”

 

“Anything for you,  _ Queen _ ,” Annabeth said, bowing deeply.

 

When Annabeth stood back up, Reyna was giving her a weird, studying look. 

 

Annabeth was worried she’d said something wrong until Reyna smiled and said, “Queen, huh? Did you use that word on purpose because of my name?”

 

“Your name?” Annabeth paused and then something seemed to dawn on her, “Ohhh, that’s right. Reyna is ‘queen’ in Spanish, I hadn’t actually realized that yet. But now that I have, it makes your name that much better, it’s perfect for you.”

 

Reyna blushed at Annabeth’s compliment. She loved making Reyna blush, it was hard to tell because of her tan skin, but Annabeth knew where to look for it. She thought it made her look even prettier – if that was possible.

 

“I think it is, too,” Reyna replied.

 

“Well, I guess we know why it doesn’t mean ‘humble’,” Annabeth muttered jokingly.

 

“I believe you mistake confidence for cockiness, sweetheart,” Reyna said sarcastically. 

 

“I am greatly sorry, then,  _ Queen _ ,” Annabeth said in a mock accent. “Now let us eat. The coffee, I’m afraid, is getting cold.”

 

“Then eat we shall,” Reyna replied with a dramatic wave toward the table.

 

————————————————

 

After eating, the women decided to hit the road again. This time, Reyna was behind the wheel and Annabeth sat in the the driver’s seat with Hermosa in her lap. They had been driving like this for four hours, only ten more until they stop for the night in the town of Joliet, Illinois.

 

Annabeth was petting Hermosa, watching the views outside her window. Okay, maybe not her window. She was looking out of Reyna’s window. Also, she wasn’t looking through the window. She was just watching Reyna. But, man, what a beautiful view.

 

Reyna glanced over at Annabeth and asked, “What are you smiling about?”

 

Annabeth was shocked out of her daze. What? She had been smiling? “Oh, I was, uh, just remembering something funny that happened,” she lied.

 

“Suuuuuuureee,” Reyna said, rolling her eyes.

 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Annabeth asked.

 

“Oh, nothing, nothing,” Reyna said the second ‘nothing’ quieter for effect.

 

“Wha— do you not believe me?” Annabeth feigned being surprised, but after all, she was lying, Reyna had no reason to believe her in the first place.

 

“Welllll, you could say that. I mean, come on, I can read facial expressions and emotions — and that was not the smile and far-off eyes of someone who was ‘remembering something funny’,” Reyna said with a sly grin.

 

“Maybe my face is different,” Annabeth said, wondering why she was digging herself deeper into this hole.

 

“Okay, since you won’t tell me the truth,” Reyna shrugged.

 

“Uh! I am  _ not  _ lyi— okay, maybe I am a little,” Annabeth confessed.

 

“I know,” Reyna replied.

 

Annabeth fixed one of her world famous glares on Reyna, barely suppressing a smile.

 

Reyna saw and laughed, “Ooooh, if looks could kill. Honey, you’re looking at the  _ queen _ of death stares and glares.”

 

“You think so, do ya? Last time I checked, I was — and still am — the master of them,” Annabeth shot back.

 

“I wouldn’t be so sure of yourself,” Reyna said, pulling over to the side of the road and stopping.

 

Annabeth was confused but really wanted to see where this was going. 

 

“You and me, let’s have a contest,” Reyna challenged.

 

Annabeth didn’t think this was a good idea for one second, so naturally she said, “You’re on.” 

 

_ Damn  _ her competitive nature.

 

Reyna unbuckled herself and positioned herself so that she was sitting crisscross in her seat and facing Annabeth. Annabeth followed suit, and the two girls were staring each other down. Annabeth didn’t really know how they were supposed to have a competition for death stares, but a competition was a competition, she was in it to win. Although, she didn’t really know how she was going to keep a glare on her face while staring at Reyna’s.

 

“What do you propose we do?” Reyna asked.

 

"Kiss," was what Annabeth wanted to say, but she opted for the safer option of, “It could be kind of like a staring contest, y’know? Except, with death stares and blinking. Whoever cracks first loses. But, I don’t really see this as a fair competition, I mean, neither of us are mad at the other, how can our death stares be legit?”

 

“Sounds like a good idea. And if you need to be angry to pull off a good death stare, I think we already know who’s going to win,” Reyna said, then proceeded to mouth the word ‘me’.

 

Annabeth gave her a glare, and Reyna grinned, “That’s it! That’s what I’m looking for!”

 

Reyna said go and the contest began. 

 

The two women sat like that for a long time. The power of their stares equal. Cars zoomed by, but to Annabeth, they were the only two people in the world right now.

 

Annabeth wasn’t thinking about the contest at hand, more rather the things she’d really like to do to Reyna, if she would let her. And she was probably blushing, okay, she was  _ definitely  _ blushing. So she sat there with that angry glare on her face, and kept her mind busy with things that  _ definitely _ would not make her angry.

 

The contest went on for about 30 minutes, and Annabeth had learned two things: one, that she  _ definitely  _ had a crush on Reyna; and two, that Reyna was  _ very  _ hot when she was “angry”. Annabeth also noticed that Reyna had the small hint of a smile coming on, and Annabeth felt herself start to break. Reyna seemed to realize that Annabeth was going to smile and tried to fight her own smile, accomplishing nothing. The two girls dissolved into laughter at the same time, effectively tying in the competition.

 

After Reyna was done laughing, she said, “Well, that was a huge waste.”

 

“What do you mean?” Annabeth asked. Because that did not feel like a waste to her.

 

“We just postponed our trip roughly 30 minutes just to  _ tie _ in a competition, sorry about that,” Reyna said.

 

“Whoa, believe me, that was most definitely  _ not  _ a waste. At least for me,” Annabeth said without really thinking.

 

“What do you mean by that?” Reyna asked, raising an eyebrow.

 

Crap. 

 

“Oh, nothing,” Annabeth lied.

 

“Okay, seems like you’re hiding something,” Reyna teased. “I doubt it’s anything embarrassing, but you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”

 

“It’s just private, that’s all,” Annabeth said, suited with her answer. But she had the strange urge to tell Reyna, at least about the crush she had on her. Annabeth thought that maybe Reyna felt the same way — she  _ hoped  _ Reyna felt the same.

 

Screw it, Annabeth was confident, she could do this. “Reyna, there’s something I, uh, have been meaning to tell you. It’s just, ever since you stopped at the side of the road all the way back in California, I’ve felt so lucky. You could’ve been some old creepy guy, but you’re not, you’re you. And I like you. When I first saw you, I couldn’t believe someone could be so beautiful and elegant. But it goes beyond your looks, Reyna, you are so confident, regal, caring, gentle, and funny. And it’s because of who you are that has made me grow so fond of you over this trip, I really like you, Reyna. And I hope you feel the same, but I understand if you don’t,” Annabeth said, gaining confidence as she went on. It felt so good to get that off her chest.

 

Reyna sat there for what felt like an eternity, staring at Annabeth, who was beginning to think she shouldn’t have said anything at all. Annabeth was about to apologize when Reyna finally spoke up.

 

“Wow… That’s just — not what I expected you to say. But, I am very happy to know that you feel that way, Annabeth. Because I’ve felt the same way for a while now, I just didn’t know how you would react if I said anything. You are so wonderful, I don’t know how I could’ve avoided feeling this way. I agreed to take you on this trip because you’re so beautiful, I knew I had to get to know you. And I am so glad that I did, because you’re the best person I’ve ever met,” Reyna finished, looking at Annabeth with a smile.

 

Annabeth couldn’t believe her ears, this was the best thing she’s ever been told. She looked up and realized how close Reyna was to her, her mouth was just a few inches away from hers, and she could feel Reyna’s hot breath on her face. Annabeth had closed her eyes and started to lean in when a knock on Reyna’s window drew them back into reality.

 

There was a policeman at their window, and Annabeth watched as Reyna rolled down the window and said, “Is there a problem, sir?”

 

“I was just stopping to see if you ladies were okay,” The officer said.

 

We were doing great until you showed up, Annabeth thought.

 

“No, we’re fine, officer. Thank you for stopping, though,” Reyna said kindly.

 

“Glad to know you’re okay. It was no problem. You ladies have a nice day,” he said.

 

“You too,” Reyna called as he walked back to his police car.

 

“Well, uh, we should probably hit the road again,” Reyna said, rubbing her neck.

 

“Yeah, I guess we should,” Annabeth said.

 

Reyna started the car and Annabeth turned in her seat, so her back was against the door, and laid one of her legs over the console, and across Reyna’s lap.

 

The last thing she felt before falling asleep was Reyna’s hand, gently stroking Annabeth’s leg as she drove off.

  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you read this, I want to personally thank you because I have great doubts in how good this work is. I would love it if you left a comment or just kudos, it truly would make me happy. Even if you don't, thanks again for reading.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Challenges and crash landings.

Annabeth could hardly sleep for five hours because her brain had other ideas. Her mind would not stop thinking about these different scenarios, all involving Reyna of course. Her thoughts were awake with things she wanted to do — or people. There were little periods of time where her brain would finally shut up, and she could actually sleep, not just pretend to. Eventually she gave up and decided she would just sleep in Joliet. Right now, however, she was watching Reyna through nearly-closed eyes.

Reyna had rolled the windows down, and her long, dark brown hair was blowing in the wind — she’d taken it out of its elegant braid a couple of hours ago. Her stoic face was focused on the road — well, not really. Every once in a while she would look over at Annabeth. It was hard for Annabeth to keep a straight face when she did that. 

She studied Reyna’s strong jawline and imagined what it would be like to trace along it with her fingertip. Her face was so regal and beautiful, even just sitting there Reyna oozed confidence and power. Annabeth admired her for that, it was one of the many ways in which they were similar.

Just then they hit a bump in the road and Annabeth was jolted up, pulling her legs over to where they should be and turning in her seat. 

“Dude! What the heck?” Annabeth said.

“Oh gosh, I am so sorry, did I wake you up?” Reyna asked, but there was a hint of sarcasm underneath. 

“Yeah, you did,” Annabeth lied.

Reyna laughed, “Annabeth, sweetie, you have not been sleeping for roughly the past hour. Do you not want to talk to me or something?” Her last question sounded a little worried.

How did she know that, Annabeth wondered.

“How could you tell? And that’s not it, I was just, uhhh…” Annabeth trailed off.

“First off, your breathing does not sound like a sleeping person’s; second of all, your eyes, dude, those were so obviously not closed. And what was that last part, I couldn’t, uhh, quite understand,” Reyna explained.

“Oh,” Annabeth said, looking out her window, “And I didn’t wake up because I was just watching you, it’s peaceful. That also sounded less creepy in my head.”

Reyna smiled to herself a little and said, “It’s not that creepy.”

She patted Annabeth’s hand and Annabeth turned hers over, intertwining their fingers. She sat back in her seat and smiled at Reyna, who was smiling back at her.

————————————————

The girls talked for the rest of the four hour trip, their locked hands resting on the console the whole time. Annabeth loved the feeling, she couldn’t wait for her friends to meet Reyna, and she hoped by then she’d be able to introduce her as her girlfriend.

Eventually, they arrived in Joliet and checked out a room at a local hotel. This time, Hermosa was allowed to stay in their room with them. And this time, there were two beds in the room. Annabeth had to admit she was a little bummed about the last part, and she got the feeling Reyna was, too.

When they got to their room, Reyna plopped onto one of the beds and said, “I haven’t changed in forever. Or showered.”

“Same. I think I’ll hop in the shower now, actually. You can take one after me if you want. Wait, I’m being rude, you can take one first,” Annabeth apologized.

“No, it’s fine. You can take one now. I’m gonna order pizza, what kind do you want?” Reyna replied.

“Thanks. Just cheese is fine for me, I don’t really care,” Annabeth said putting a twenty dollar bill in Reyna’s hand. “You better use this.”

“It’s no problem. One medium ‘just cheese’ pizza coming right up, paid for with your twenty, I promise,” Reyna said, mock-saluting.

Annabeth rolled her eyes and laughed, heading to the bathroom. She locked the door behind her, took her shampoo, conditioner, body wash, and razor from her bag and set them on the side of the shower. She got undressed quickly, placing her old clothes in her drawstring bag and setting her fresh ones on the counter. She turned the water on and waited a couple minutes for it to warm up before she stepped in, pulling the curtain shut.

She sighed as she let the warm water hit her chest and stood like that for a few minutes, thinking about the past two days and how lucky she was that Reyna had stopped to pick her up. Annabeth didn’t really believe in fate, but she felt as if this was meant to be. She really wanted to kiss Reyna and wondered what it would feel like. She thought about how they’d almost kissed on the side of the road, until that dumb cop showed up. She snapped out of her thoughts, realizing that she needed to leave hot water for Reyna’s shower.

She washed her hair and body; it felt good to get rid of the dirt, oils, and sweat that had been trapped there. She shaved her legs and underarms, loving how smooth they felt—even knowing it wouldn’t last long.

Annabeth shut off the water and grabbed two of the four hotel towels off the rack. She wrapped one in her hair and used the other to dry off her body. Once she was dry—finally, hotel towels are crappy—she pulled on her underwear and sports bra—a near impossible task. She put on black and white Nike shorts over that and put on an orange t-shirt from a summer camp she used to go to. And not just any summer camp, this one was Greek themed. It’s where she’d first met Percy and Grover and eventually Piper.

She brushed her wet hair and studied herself in the mirror. What little makeup she had been wearing was now washed off, her hair was damp, and she wasn’t exactly “dressed up”. Annabeth thought she still looked pretty good, her legs looked good and so did her arms. She also thought her face was really pretty. She hoped Reyna thought the same.

She picked up her bag and left the bathroom, turning off the light. She found Reyna sitting criss cross at the end of the bed nearest to the door leading into their room. She was clicking through channels on the TV. She settled for National Geographic, and Annabeth gasped and had to turn away as the screen switched to the view of a close-up spider clamping its fangs onto the body of a dead bug. Reyna turned to look at Annabeth, grinning.

“Scared of a little spider?” she teased

“First of all, that thing was not little; second of all, yes I am,” Annabeth admitted.

“Oh, really? Why?” Reyna asked.

“I’ve just always been freaked out by them, I didn’t have a bad experience as a child or anything. Maybe it’s in my blood,” she shrugged, joking about that last part.

“Makes sense, a lot of people have the same fear. And that picture was pretty horrifying.”

Annabeth nodded in agreement. She was glad that Reyna hadn’t made fun of her like she’d expected. She’d even changed the channel for her. Now some weird show about hoarders was on, but it wasn’t like she was going to be paying attention to the TV anyway. She sat down on the bed next to Reyna, leaning back on her hands and letting her legs hang off the bed.

“Did you order the pizza?” Annabeth asked, looking at Reyna, who was watching the show with a weird look.

“Yeah, about five minutes ago, it should be here in like fifteen minutes. I should probably hop in the shower now,” Reyna answered.

“Okay, good. My shampoo and stuff is still in there, you can use it if you want,” Annabeth offered.

“Thanks,” Reyna said, hopping up and walking into the bathroom. Annabeth watched her walk away.

Annabeth listened to the click of the door shutting and the second click of it locking. She heard the water turn on and listened to it rain onto the floor of the shower. She heard the shower curtain being pulled open and then closed. She laid back onto the bed and just listened for a bit. At one point she could’ve sworn she heard Reyna singing to herself and smiled.

After about five minutes, she decided to watch TV. She looked at the channel guide and went to Nickelodeon to see Spongebob Squarepants was on. She smiled to herself, remembering all the times she used to watch this as a kid and the occasional time nowadays. She’d seen pretty much every episode multiple times.

The Band Geeks episode was playing, and Patrick was asking if mayonnaise was an instrument. Annabeth loved this episode and found herself laughing like a little kid again. She sat and watched the episode laughing and smiling each time they cracked a joke or Patrick did something stupid. During their epic Bubble Bowl performance, Annabeth found herself near tears because of her laughter. She felt like a little kid again watching her favorite cartoon. 

A throat being cleared caught her attention, and she snapped her head to the side. She saw Reyna leaning against the wall, watching her with a smile on her face. 

“Dude. How long have you been standing there?” Annabeth asked.

“About since Spongebob said ‘A one, a two, a skidlididlidoo’. I love that episode,” Reyna answered, “Has the pizza gotten here yet?”

“So do I,” Annabeth replied. “And no, it hasn’t come yet but I have a feeling it will be here soon.”

Reyna was wearing the same clothes she had been wearing since she picked Annabeth up in California. 

“Would you like to borrow some of my clothes to wear? I bet they would fit you,” Annabeth offered. 

“That would be nice,” Reyna said, “thank you so much.”

“No problem,” Annabeth said, handing Reyna some gray cotton Nike shorts and a purple tank top, “We’ll be at Percy’s tomorrow, and I pretty much have my own room there, so clothes won’t be a problem.”

Reyna went to the bathroom to change, and there was a knock on the door. Annabeth hopped up to get her twenty from the nightstand and hurried to the door. Finally, the pizza’s here she thought as she opened the door to a guy who looked to be about her age. He was short with curly, unruly brown hair and brown eyes that hid a sort of mischievous fire beneath them. His name tag was crooked and read ‘Leo’ in black print. He had golden brown skin and was looking at Annabeth with a smile on his face.

“Are you a parking ticket? Because you’ve got fine written all over you,” Leo winked.

Annabeth laughed at the ridiculous line, “How cheesy.”

“As cheesy as this pizza,” he said, grinning.

She laughed again, “That was so stupid it was almost funny,” she smiled. “Now, can I have the pizza?”

“Oh, right. Here ya go, that’ll be 12.25,” Leo said, handing the box of pizza he’d been holding to Annabeth. 

“Thank you,” Annabeth smiled, placing her twenty in Leo’s outstretched hand.

“Before I go, would you grab my arm so I can tell my friends I’ve been touched by an angel?” he asked with a mischievous smile.

“How about I just let you keep the change?” Annabeth offered, smirking.

Leo blushed, realizing he had totally forgotten about the change he owed her. “Oh, uh, sorry about that—I— well, thank you,” he sputtered and walked down the hall.

Annabeth closed the door, laughing to herself. The pizza she was holding smelled delicious and the bottom of the box was warm against her hand. She saw Reyna sitting on one of the beds and went to sit beside her, placing the box of pizza between them.

“Don’t you know that grease doesn’t go well with comforters?” Reyna asked sarcastically.

“Then I guess we’ll just have to sleep in the other bed,” Annabeth suggested with a wink.

“I guess we will,” Reyna said nonchalantly, grabbing a slice of pizza.

Dang, that worked out better than expected, Annabeth thought. Now she just needed a plan to kiss Reyna. It was frustrating, Reyna knew Annabeth liked her and in turn Annabeth knew Reyna liked her back. Why couldn’t either of them just do something about it? Annabeth was determined to make something happen, and sooner rather than later.

The two women ate in a comfortable silence, watching whatever was on the TV. They both ate three pieces of the pizza, putting the leftovers in the fridge. They went back to watching the TV, both sitting criss cross, their knees touching and Annabeth leaning slightly on Reyna.

After a little bit, it was Reyna who broke the silence, “What time is it even?” 

Annabeth turned to look at the clock on the nightstand. “Woah, it’s only 8:50. We could go swimming still, I’m pretty sure there’s a pool here.”

“What would we go swimming in?” Reyna asked.

“I’d say our underwear, but I’m sure that won’t be allowed. We could go across the street to buy swimsuits at Walmart, though,” Annabeth suggested, shrugging.

“That’s actually not a bad idea. Let’s go. But can we walk there? I’ve been in a car for way too long.”

————————————————

The girls got back to the hotel at 9:10, went to their hotel room to change into their swimsuits, and then headed to the pool on the main floor. The pool was empty except for one family gathering their things to leave. The room smelled of chlorine and the air was hot, the floor was wet and slippery. Annabeth loved the feeling of hotel pool rooms, it was so familiar. 

They took off their t-shirts and set them on one of the cheap plastic tables. Annabeth was wearing black bikini bottoms with a white halter top that had black palm trees on it. She saw Reyna staring at her and smiled to herself, that was what she’d hoped for. Reyna herself looked amazing as usual, Annabeth thought. She was wearing white bikini bottoms with a fancy deep purple top. She looked so good, Annabeth had to keep herself from staring.

“We have the whole pool to ourselves, dude, this is great,” Reyna said, smiling.

“Awesome. Let’s get in,” Annabeth said, running and jumping into the water—well, not exactly running, it was more of a cautious walk to avoid falling on the wet floor. 

The water was cold when she broke the surface, but she got used to it as her whole body was submerged. She pushed off of the pool floor with her feet and opened her eyes to see Reyna mid-jump. Annabeth turned her head just in time to avoid the splash from Reyna’s jump.

When Reyna surfaced, Annabeth smiled, happy to be in her company. She had gotten lucky when Reyna pulled over and picked her up.

Reyna was smiling back at Annabeth. Annabeth got an idea. “How does a handstand contest sound?”

“Sound great,” Reyna said, “you’re on.”

Annabeth went first, she made her legs as straight as possible, tried to keep her toes pointed, and held it as long as she could. When she was gonna come back up for air, she completed the handstand by flipping her legs over her body in a front walk-over thing.

“Impressive,” Reyna said with a smirk, “but not that impressive, I give it an 8 outta 10.”

Annabeth laughed, “Tough judge. I guess I’ll just have to be tougher.”

It was Reyna’s turn to go and her form was near flawless. At the end she did some fancy twist thing and then came up without splashing. Annabeth was not about to give her a 10 because it wasn’t that good, so she gave her the next best thing.

“9.1 for your performance, queen,” Annabeth said in an overly sweet voice.

“Why thank you, m’lady,” Reyna replied using the same tone. “Your turn.”

In the end, Annabeth ended up giving Reyna a 9.1, 8.7, and a 9, giving her the total score of 26.8. In turn, Reyna gave Annabeth an 8, 9.4, and a 9.2, giving her the total score of 26.6. 

“Close game,” Annabeth said.

“Yeah, but not close enough,” Reyna smirked.

“Oh, shut up,” Annabeth said, splashing Reyna.

“It’s on, dude,” Reyna said, hitting Annabeth with a huge splash that caught her by surprise.

The two girls went on like that for a while, splashing each other, filling the room with the sounds of their laughter, and covering the floor with pool water. 

The battle was intense. In the end, both Reyna and Annabeth were out of breath from laughing so hard and splashing so furiously. The girls decided it was time to get out of the pool and dry off. 

“Do you wanna head up to the room?” Reyna asked, drying herself with a towel.

“Yeah, it’s getting pretty late, we should head up,” Annabeth replied, pulling her t-shirt back on.

When they were dried (finally, hotel towels are crap), Reyna informally proposed a challenge.

“Race you to the room!” Reyna yelled through her smile, and she took off.

Annabeth laughed before tearing after her. Their laughter rang through the halls as they raced past rooms and up the stairs. They were neck and neck almost the whole time. Reyna was super fast, but Annabeth knew she could be faster. So, as they neared their room, Annabeth put one last burst of energy into her step and pulled ahead of Reyna. Annabeth touched their door first, but Reyna wasn’t far behind. Reyna crashed into Annabeth and the two girls fell to the floor.

Annabeth laughed and looked up at Reyna, who was now positioned on top of her with one hand on each side next to Annabeth’s head. Both girls were panting from the run. Annabeth knew her face must be red from more than exertion. She saw that Reyna was blushing, too, and she smiled to herself.

“I win,” Annabeth whispered.

“Oh, shut up,” Reyna smiled, leaning closer.

Before Annabeth knew it, they were kissing. The kiss was passionate but sweet and tender at the same time. She had been waiting for this moment since they’d met. The kiss filled Annabeth with a sense of happiness and lightness, and she wanted to savor every moment. The kiss felt like it went on forever and time seemed to slow down. The only people that mattered were her and Reyna. Annabeth thought she could stay like this forever.

When they pulled away for breath, Annabeth opened her eyes to see Reyna smiling down at her with a gleam in her eyes. Annabeth knew her smile matched Reyna’s.

“Let’s take this into the room,” Reyna whispered, standing up and taking Annabeth’s hand to help her up. 

As they rushed into their room, Annabeth thanked the gods for leading her to this person, this beautiful, amazing person. Annabeth couldn’t help but think she’d fallen in love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys, sorry it took me so long to finish this chapter. I really hope you enjoyed it and this whole story so far. Thank you guys for reading!!

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, guys, this is my first time ever writing a fanfic, so if you could please comment if you liked it or maybe something I could do better it would mean a lot to me and it would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much for reading!


End file.
